China Takes Control of 65 Dating Sites

The move to close the sites comes on the first day of the Year of the Sheep and the beginning the Chinese new year.

"These websites allowed registration with false names, leaked customers' information, connived some users' fraud and spread obscene and lascivious content," the CAC said in a statement to the Xinhua news agency. "The circumstances were serious and the impact was terrible.”

In China, dating sites must enforce “real name” registration and accounts failing to register with them must be closed.

Citing prostitution and fraud, the CAC said violations of dating site rules have “become a public nuisance to millions of users, especially around the Spring Festival when people use these services more.”